Daily Republican. [volume] ([Wilmington, Del.]) 1874-1890, 1887-02-28

tho Necessity of some system-Th q
plans which Have Been FroDosed saDr
This Ctty- what tine Work Can be
Done For.
The M cessity OF soue system OF sew.
erage for this city has been urged BY
local sApitaIiAns for the past decade,
and although during that time o nun.
ber OF private sewers or drains hare
been constructed, with ehiplay Ran
|sewer and some Of less magnitude by
the city, no general sy stem has ~ yet
been adopted. With the rapid increase
In the population, ths absolute mecca
sity Of the prompt removal OF sewage ID
no Longer question, And even those
who are opposed to placiug this nAttsr
in the hande Of corpoI st.on recognize
the TACT that the day is not 'Ar distant
when some action will hsvo TO be taken
The innate Rthorreoce OF matter ofYen.
|sive TO the stDses In uuquesuonab y
based upon the danger of It's presence
danger which seems to be shared even
by many animals, which bury their
lexcrements or remove hem out OF their
sight and smell.
If matt uss thus makes known her In.
visible Law by instin ut, 1t is surely this
mistakable inferenos tina. the sx
cseta OF human beings should he
spt edily removed by the best attain able
method. The qusstion raised by DIR.
Bush of The pollution OF the soil OF this
city by human excrement ia using cess
pools, which re said has been going on
for the past 200 years, is worthy OF
serious confederation, as 1t Is q vital mat.
Ger which will no doubt sooncr or later
affect the health and lives of the people
Of this city. Taking the results OF a
number of analysis sufficieatly COM
plete TO give q fair average. tha amount
OF ex srement per each individual dur
ing "a hours IL about az ounces, ~
estimate which gives about % tors per
year for every 1000 inhabitants, or
an annual total OF 1878 tons for the
population Of this city, estimating It at
90, 600. The greater part of the ex.
crs mentious matter is Deposited In cess
pools, and the fac. that there ts a con
stant exhalatiGu Of poisonous gases
was conclusively pre- we'd by q gentle
man last simmer, Who . aced several
rose bushes and other plants In the
Immediate vicinity Of cssspool, IN
such . position that II thera we're any
eases exhaled they would be subject TO
their influence.
Iu less than fortnigh oil the plan.s
commenced TO wither and before the
Close OF month were all dead. The
question therefore naturally arises II
this gas Ia so destructive to vegetation,
what must its effects he ON humsn life
and health? Another important mat.
Ter In this conneotion Ia the germ
theory, q theory which 1t IL safe TO a.
is the accepted doctrine OF the most ad.
vanced esti2ators everywhere. 40.
'ording to this theory all deoaytng
matter, whether animal. vegt table or
excrementious, throws of germs and
0acilli, which produce typhoid fever,
|diphtheria, scarlet fever aud other dis
eases of . like nature.
Another matter which must not be
lost sight Of Is this pollution OF the
earth or subsoils me nilonsd above In
the vicinity of cesspools, aud the dan
ger from this source is no doubt CREST
In zone sections OF this city where the
subsotl 10 TO great ez tent gravelly and
porous. DIR. Bush contends that 1t 10
only que. tion OF time, if oeespeols are
10 nlinued In this city, before the cell
,ars aud the soil Of o large part Of the
territory upon which our residences
are built will bscome hotbeds of dis.
ease.
These facts being yearly more and
more apparent have induced sAnitari.
ans In this city, the same as elsewb ere,
TO have some means adopted whereby
this excrementions matter especially,
cut also the slops and other waste water,
could be easily and quickly removed
and disposed OF In suoh manner that
there would not be any danger Of It's
pe'nicions Influence on the lives or
health Of the people.
The matter assumed definite shape In
the early part OF 1888 when Rudolph
hering, an expert sanitary engineer.
was employ cd by City Council, to for
mulate u plan for a ~ stem Of sewerage
for this city.
After careful survey he made q re
port on February IL. 1888. in which he
fuliy showed the absolute necessity Of
system OF sewerage and recommended
plan with 50 miles of sewers bet ween
tho Brand wine and Christians CREEKS.
at cost of S395, 600 This estimate In.
cluded besides the sewers all appurte-
nances, such as man.holes, flushing ar
rangeDents and branches for house
connectione, also the thing for subsoil
drainage. His plan proposed for South
Wilmington included o pumping sta
tion, made Ii recess ary by the low ground,
to raise the sewage before 1, could be
discharged into the river. This. with
o1< miles OF sewer, would cost $50, 900.
pumping station, with $50 miles of
sewers, would also bs necessary In The
NINTH ward, which. with an outfall
main OF Il miles, including an invsrt-
eo syphon under Brand , vine creek.
would cost $l7l 600, making the total
amount S546 COO. This system, IL ia but
proper to state, would have extended
oVtr nearly the entire area of the city.
ana pean fully sufficient for q popula.
lion OF one hundred thousand persons.
NO action was taken on this pl.n. and
me subject was ailowel to rest until
the following year.
IN the early part OF 1884 proposition
was made to introduce the Wes. Sys
sen' OF the National Sewerage and Sow
t3e tiii2 alton Company of New Ycrk.
~ sone OF the parties who are now in
.e'eelen 10 the company which PROPOSES
w sewer thit city by contract ON the
W'aring plan The West system con.
seu OF email pipes adapted to the
carry ing OF exereta aud house water az
cl0siveiy, with large wells sunk at dif.
sa1ah tesent places In the city, Of proper
uepln according to the estima,ed
ahonnt na Of sewage to bs dealt with
Iaess wells were to be both air and
aater light and the main sswers were
70 empty into them. The diameter nf
ene connecting pipa WAS to be six inches
sna thet OF the main twenty. fonr OF
n"re inches 1n each well ons or two
powerful pumps were TO be placsd. O,
, SUN aao sient capacity to raise and f,rcs
i,ooo or 1000 gallons of sewage nsr
napats nao through pipes to filtering beds
n,1 o9a.eu at some point In South VIII.
SiuRt0u. Whara fbo, ,o,.Il